CHINA LOOKS AT PLANS TO BAN PETROL AND DIESEL CARS

China, the world's biggest car market, plans to ban the production and sale of diesel and petrol cars and vans. The country's vice minister of industry said it had started "relevant research" but that it had not yet decided when the ban would come into force.

"Those measures will certainly bring profound changes for our car industry's development," Xin Guobin told Xinhua, China's official news agency. China made 28 million cars last year, almost a third of the global total. Both the UK and France have already announced plans to ban new diesel and petrol vehicles by 2040, as part of efforts to reduce pollution and carbon emissions.

Chinese-owned carmaker Volvo said in July that all its new car models would have an electric motor from 2019. Geely, Volvo's Chinese owner, aims to sell one million electric cars by 2025. Other global car firms including Renault-Nissan, Ford and General Motors are all working to develop electric cars in China.

Automakers are jostling for a slice of the growing Chinese market ahead of the introduction of new rules designed to fight pollution. China wants electric battery cars and plug-in hybrids to account for at least one-fifth of its vehicle sales by 2025.

The proposals would require 8% of automakers' sales to be battery electric or plug-in hybrids by next year, rising to 12% in 2020. Xin predicted the change would create "turbulent times" in the industry. The shift will also have a knock-on effect on oil demand in China. The country is currently the world's second-largest oil consumer after the US.

 

TUPAC'S HUMMER SELLS FOR $206k ON ITS SECOND AUCTION

 

This is the second time Tupac Shakur's Hummer has gone to auction, but hopefully this time, the winning bidder actually pays. Last year, Shakur's old Hummer crossed the auction block selling for $337,144, but the winning bidder defaulted on payment. Since RR Auction was unable to collect on the vehicle, it crossed the auction block again and this time, it sold for $206,531. That's quite a bit more than the estimate of around $100,000 that the auction house expected.

The Hummer H1 was the last vehicle Shakur would purchase in his lifetime on August 16, 1996, a little less than a month before his death. The fully loaded model was customised by the late rapper with modifications like off-road lights, a 360-degree spotlight, grille guard, diamond-plat bumpers, off-road wheels and tires, and more. it's powered by a 6.5-litre turbo-diesel V8 engine and has just 10,101 miles on the odometer.

According to Boston-based RR Auction, the winning bid came from a businessman in Baltimore who wishes to remain anonymous. "It's an incredible piece of hip-hop history, and we are thrilled to have played a role in helping to find its new home," said Bobby Livingston, executive vice president at RR Auction. "Accompanied by incredible provenance and purchased a month before his death, the vehicle will no doubt only continue to go up in value."

 
Credit: online news

SHOULD YOU CONSIDER 'MILEAGE' WHEN BUYING A USED CAR? HERE'S WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING...

In the course of doing this job, about 80% of prospective customers are looking for used car with 'low mileage' (imagine someone looking for a 2003 car with 70,000 mileage!) but I often 'preach' to them to ascertain and go with the overall condition of the individual car instead of searching around town for a low-mileage vehicle. But fact is most people believe the higher the mileage, the weaker the engine. Is this true or not? Let's take a look at what people are saying:

* "Mileage matters because some vehicle components wear out at a given mileage no matter how well the vehicle has been looked after. In a general sense, the greater the mileage then the greater the wear. This goes across the board - the interior, the exterior and the mechanicals. Cars are getting more reliable and some taxis extract really high mileage out of their cars but a high mileage car is a tired car. The way a car is driven is probably more important than mileage but that is much harder to gauge and much harder to predict outcomes. There are some indicators that may give you an insight into the condition of the car and the way it was driven. Paintwork - chips and fading, underbody - dirt, oil and rust, engine bay - cleanliness, oil, rust, leaks and streaks, tyres - wear patterns, exhaust - colour, interior - driver seat condition, brake pedal rubber wear. A good car should start easy in the cold and sound right as well as feeling right."

 

* "The short answer is; mileage does affect the “book” purchase and selling values, however I have seen many vehicles, that were maintained well, with over 200K miles and still in very good condition. Conversely I have seen cars with under 90K that were VERY POORLY maintained and nearly worthless. In modest priced cars, being purchased for transportation, BUY THE CONDITION OF THE VEHICLE first, and be concerned about the mileage second."

 

* "Mileage matters, but not nearly as much as maintenance records. I have driven a couple cars with over 300,000 miles on them, and they ran fantastic. My current daily driver is a beat up BMW 735 with almost 250,000 miles on it, and it runs like it’s brand new. These cars have been very well maintained by enthusiasts though, not like the typical 150,000 Honda that’s had 8-10 oil changes in its lifetime."

 

* "It all depends on the car make and how well it was taken car of. You first need to distinguish if a car was highway driven versus stop and go city driving. You can easily tell a highway driven car just by inspecting the front of the car for any road rash, especially around the radiator. On a city driven car, you would see a lot of wear on the brake pedal with the rubber coming off. I would stay away from high mileage stop and go cars as they take the most abuse to wear and tear on the brakes, transmission and engine. High mileage highway driven cars have less wear and tear that are much better condition as they are driven at their optimal performance without the abusive stop and go."

 

* "High mileage with service records and maintenance done regularly is OK, without records it is a ticking time bomb. If the motor and/or transmission have not been overhauled then one or both will soon require one. That is guaranteed especially at mileages exceeding 250,000 miles. Lastly, durability depends on the reputation of the particular motor/transmission in the car being considered. A 2002 Lincoln Town Car with 160,000 miles with service done is like buying a car with 45000 miles. On the other hand, a Chrysler PT Cruiser with 80,000 miles and no service records is a guaranteed money pit within a few weeks of buying it."

 

excerpts: quora.com

6 DRIVING HABITS THAT WRECK YOUR CAR AND DRAIN YOUR WALLET

The longer you own a car, the more driving habits you acquire. Unfortunately, not all of those habits are good ones. Moreover, the more experienced you become the harder it is to break them. Hopefully, this article will help you avoid dangerous situations and unnecessary expenses.

1. RESTING YOUR HAND ON THE MANUAL GEAR STICK
Many people have the habit of resting their hand on the gear stick while driving. This shouldn’t be done for several reasons, the most obvious being that you need both hands to steer. Another harmful effect is that such small, yet constant, pressure on the gearbox turns it into a kind of cocktail shaker, displacing synchronizers and gears. This, in turn, leads to problems with shifting gears.

2. REFUELING ONLY WHEN THE TANK IS ALMOST EMPTY
When your car is not in use, mechanical impurities accumulate in the fuel tank and sediment forms at the bottom. The dirt gets into the fuel pump and the filters, causing damage. During winter months, be sure to always leave the tank at least half-filled with fuel to avoid the formation of large amounts of condensate. In freezing conditions, the presence of water in the fuel tank can lead to its deformation and other problems.

3. FREQUENT BRAKING
If you keep braking unnecessarily, you’d better set aside a hefty sum for regular brake pad and disc replacements. To avoid unpleasant accidents, remember to promptly change the brake hoses and keep your eye on the brake fluid level.

4. IGNORING SUSPICIOUS SOUNDS
Slight creaking sounds and other unusual noises can indicate a malfunction. Many drivers tend to ignore these signs, and, as a result, their cars often break down in the middle of the road. If your car starts emitting unnatural sounds, be sure to run proper diagnostics to identify the problem and deal with it in time.

5. NEGLECTING TO USE THE HAND BRAKE
When you park a car with automatic transmission on a slope, the entire burden falls on the lock gear of the output shaft of the gearbox. To successfully park on an incline, hold the foot brake and shift into "park." Then pull the hand brake, and only then slowly release the brake.

6. RUNNING A COLD ENGINE AT HIGH REVS
Most modern engines don’t need warming up. But it is worth remembering that until the temperature gauge indicates operating temperature one shouldn’t run the engine at more than 2,000 revs.

Credit: autoblog

2017 CAR OF THE YEAR AWARD... AND THE WINNER IS...

BMW 5 SERIES 520d SE

It is hard to recall another year with so many exceptional new models vying for our overall Car of the Year award, which makes the BMW 5 Series’s victory all the more impressive. The Seat Ateca and Skoda Kodiaq ran it closest, both fully deserving their class wins. However, the BMW beats its key rivals more convincingly in the key areas.

Put simply, it wins its class by a knockout rather than on points, and that’s why it takes the overall crown. The 520d SE with optional variable dampers is the pick of the 5 Series range. But whichever version you choose, you’ll be getting one of the classiest and most comfortable cars on sale today.
We have traditionally classed the likes of the BMW 5 Series, Mercedes-Benz E-Class and Jaguar XF as large executive cars. However, the latest versions of these desirable saloons are so spacious and well finished that we reckon they’re fully deserving of the ‘luxury car’ tag.

The 5 Series in particular is plush enough inside to compare favourably with just about any other car on sale. Most features, including its iDrive infotainment, are taken from the pricier 7 Series, but in some ways the 5 Series is even more sophisticated: a semi-autonomous driving mode is available that lets you take your hands off the wheel for up to 30 seconds. Standard kit includes everything from sat-nav to leather upholstery and an automatic gearbox.

WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A HYBRID, A PLUG-IN HYBRID AND AN ELECTRONIC 'EV' CAR?

The UK government has announced that there will be no more new petrol or diesel cars for sale after the year 2040. This describes most of the cars currently trundling around highways and the streets, as well as the vast majority of cars worldwide. So when this new law is enacted, what will we be left with?

Well, pretty much anything you want. With the exception of a handful of smaller producers, all the mainstream car brands currently offer vehicles that comply with the 2040 rule, in addition to some that won't. In fact, if the law was passed tomorrow, car buyers wouldn’t find it that much of a struggle to find a model they’d be happy to purchase. That’s because hybrid cars – those with wheels driven by both a normal engine and an electric motor – will still be on the market after 2040.

The term ‘hybrid’ car is technically quite vague, but in the context of cars almost always refers to a petrol-electric powertrain. This means the car uses a combination of electricity stored in batteries and petrol stored in a tank to propel the car forward. The details of this arrangement will vary from car to car. A hybrid vehicle will almost always be able to charge its own batteries using the petrol engine. In some cases, this is all the petrol engine is there for – to recharge the batteries, which power the electric motors. In other types of hybrid, the petrol motor drives the wheels directly, but an additional battery/motor combination adds some electric drive.

In ‘mild hybrids’, the amount of electric power that drives the wheels is limited. The car won’t normally drive on electric power alone, but a small electric motor can be used to fill in the gaps where the car might be coasting. These systems are cheaper than ‘full hybrid’ models but have a much smaller benefit it terms of emissions. Some hybrid cars are what’s known as ‘plug-in’ hybrids. As the name suggests, these cars can be plugged-in to the national grid by means of a cable. This will charge the car’s batteries and reduce the amount of petrol that needs to be used, which in turn reduces the cost per mile as well as the exhaust emissions of the car. There is no requirement to plug the car in though (unlike with electric cars) and many owners choose not to.

To make things more confusing, some models are available as a petrol car or as a hybrid. And more bafflingly still, some hybrids have a plug-in option. You’d be surprised at how many cars are now available as a hybrid of some description, though – the Volkswagen Golf, Mercedes E-Class, Volvo XC90 and BMW 3-Series are all now available with hybrid powertrains.

An electric car is one that runs on, and is ‘charged up’ with, electric power alone. An electric car is only ever refuelled with electricity itself, which enters the car (normally) by means of a charging cable, and never by liquid or other fuel. The electricity is stored in batteries before being used by electric motors to drive the car’s wheels.

This is in contrast to hybrid cars, which have electric elements to their powertrains but which cannot be considered ‘electric cars’ due to the presence of a petrol engine. This point has caused confusion recently, as some manufacturers (and indeed commentators) have incorrectly referred to hybrid cars as ‘electric cars’.

Electric cars are becoming commonplace thanks to certain financial advantages, including tax breaks and the lower cost of “filling up” compared to a tank of petrol. They’re considered better for the environment due to the fact they emit no exhaust gases. Popular examples of electric vehicles (often abbreviated to “EV”) include the Nissan Leaf, Renault Zoe, Tesla Model S, Tesla Model X and Tesla Model 3.
 
Electric vehicles have several key benefits when compared to ordinary petrol and diesel cars, as well as increasingly popular hybrid cars. Electric vehicles emit no pollution at the tailpipe, which means they have a much smaller local environmental impact. They operate very quietly and are generally extremely easy to drive, with no real gearbox to speak of and a great deal of power at low speeds.

Credit: telegraph

TOYOTA: A BRIEF HISTORY

The history of Toyota is rather long but an interesting one. Here I will try to present a short overview of it, as I will try to touch upon important aspects of it. Aspects which helped Toyota to become, out of a small Japanese firm, the biggest single producer and the second biggest producer of cars in the world, after General Motors.
The story begins with the birth of Sakichi Toyoda on February 14, 1867, which was about the time the Japanese modernization and industrialization had began. Toyoda began his engineering achievements in the field of textile, and particularly with the creation in 1897 of a modern loom, known as the G-type Automatic Loom, at the time the most technologically advanced. After this success, Toyoda decided to pursue his dream, to create an automobile. Thus, with the help from his son Kiichiro Toyoda and using the money from the successful loom technology, Toyoda invested in his research and development of an automobile in 1930. As the work was progressing, he established the first Automobile Department, within his existing "Toyoda Automatic Loom Works" company in September 1933. In April 1935 Toyoda completed the first prototype of an engine named the type A, and soon thereafter the first automobile, the A1. In April 1936 the mass production of the A1 and a light truck G1, based on the A1, begins. The successful project, leads to the establishment of Toyota Motor Corporation Ltd., on August 28, 1937 by Kiichiro Toyoda. The letter "d" in the name Toyoda, was replaced by the letter "t" for softer sounding, and easier pronunciation.
After the end of the Second World war TMC starts working hard, and by October 1947, it managed to do the first post-war export, BM trucks to Okinawa, and SA cars to Egypt. A bit later, on December 16 1947, Toyota established the Nippondenso Co., Ltd. During 1969 Toyota celebrates its one millionth exported car, and by 1979 the tenth millionth exported car (which by the way happened to be a Celica Supra 1st generation).
All these incredible successes were achieved by the so called "Toyotism" or the system of production created by Toyota, and said to be the best and most efficient one in the world of automobile production. The main aspects of it are a mixture of strict quality control, close relations with the local communities, selection and training of the labour force, very clear and liberal relationship between the worker, the mid and high managerial levels, minimised hierarchy in the company. This mixture created the perfect base for the evolution of Toyota as a company and its products as well. Its global view quickly achieved production bases all over the world. Toyota's strict policy of using the most advanced and modern technology in the production of, as well as utilizing it in their cars, brought the company today, as the undisputed leader in the important field of technological advance.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT TESLA MODEL 3

Tesla Model 3 is no doubt one of the trending topics in recent times. We take a sneak peak at what the car is all about...

The Tesla Model 3 is a mid-size all-electric four-door luxury sedan manufactured and marketed by Tesla, Inc. According to Tesla officials the standard Model 3 delivers an EPA rated all-electric range of 220 miles (350 km) and the long range model delivers 310 miles (500 km). The Model 3 has a nearly barren dashboard with only a center mounted LCD touchscreen.

Limited production of the Model 3 began in July 2017, with the first production vehicle rolling off the assembly line on July 7, 2017 and the official launch and delivery of the first 30 cars on July 28, 2017. Tesla CEO Elon Musk expects production to reach 20,000 vehicles per month by December 2017 or approximately 60 percent of the design capacity of the manufacturing line.

Within a week of the 2016 unveiling, Tesla said they had taken 325,000 Model 3 reservations, more than triple the number of Model S sedans Tesla had sold by the end of 2015. These reservations represent potential sales of over US$14 billion. By August 2017, there were 455,000 net reservations, and an average of 1,800 additional being added per day.

Credit: wikipedia

8 THINGS TO DO BEFORE STARTING YOUR CAR EVERYDAY!

There are two kinds of car owners, the ones who maintain their vehicles for years and the ones, who can not seem to keep their car for more than a year or less. The difference between these two is the simple, easy, loving ways the first set of car owners take to ensure that their automobiles run smoothly. These ways involve doing certain things for maintenance and safety sake even before the engine is turned on.

 

Here are eight important things you have to do before starting your car.

1. Check your wiper blades (especially in this rainy season).

2. Check and adjust your mirrors.

3. Check radiator water

4. Check your tires

5. Make sure your seat is in a comfortable position.  

6. Make sure no object such as phones and other gadgets are placed where they can cause distraction.

7. If you have kid(s), use infant car seat.

8. Make sure all passengers have their seat belts on.

 

We hope your find this helpful. Thanks for dropping by and keep in touch for more tips.
 

Welcome to MGI Autos

                  Welcome to MGI Autos!

Meadows Green Imports Ltd. is a car dealership company, which is focused on consultation, importation, sales and supply of used cars from Europe and North America. In the past four years, we have been providing our esteemed customers with good quality vehicles without compromising reliability and affordability.  

With MGI Autos, you can pre-order your vehicle from the USA i.e. we buy, ship, clear and deliver your vehicle to your doorstep anywhere in Nigeria. This, we have been able to achieve because of our high level of integrity and honesty.

Please, do not hesitate to contact us for your automobile needs today!

Thank you.